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Hi, everyone and welcome back to Happy Hour. 欢迎回来酒馆. Hi, 安澜.

Hi, Lulu, hi, everyone.

But then moving on to the person or the people who are doing the suck-up.

Yeah. So let’s start, for example, at school, teacher’s pet.

就是老师的走狗呗，叫pet比较好听. It’s like teacher’s lackey.

Yeah. So it’s a student who always tries to impress the teacher and other classmates often dislike them for that.

The ones who’s always trying to talk to the teacher, tries to impress the teacher even during the break.

Yeah.

And they even tell on other people.

So for example, everyone thinks Lily is the teacher’s pet, because she always brings her tea and laughs her jokes. I think every class has a teacher’s pet.

Or a few.

Or a few.

But then with that logic, you also have boss’s pet. I’ve heard of that expression.

I’ve never heard that expression before. I guess people do say it, but...

You can see where it comes from.

You can see where it comes from. I can understand what it means. But in the world of work, I would say we would usually say yesman or yeswoman.

Oh, a yesman is yes boss... yes boss...yes boss... So great boss, your ideas are great, excellent.

So for example, the manager surrounds himself with yesmen who never question him.

点头虫

Okay. So nodding head...

Bug.

Bug. Okay.

Yes, boss. Yes, boss. Yes, boss. Yesman, yeswoman. I don’t really hear yes-woman.

No.

It’s generally yesman as a general expression.

Yeah.

Yeah. You have to be very careful with bosses who like to surround themselves with yesmen, because then they don’t get to hear the reality,  the harsh reality. And they are not likely to really have vision or any long-term success.

They’re more focused on themselves and how they feel rather than kind of what’s best for the company.

Yeah. Plus you really will be detached from reality.

Yeah. So another expression and this is a little bit more vulgar, brown-noser.

They call them brown-nose or brown-noser. Is it because their faces are buried so deep in their boss’s ass?

Yes.

That is so gross.

It is a really, really gross expression.

If you don’t understand what we were talking about, listen again. Why are their noses brown is because they have their faces buried so deep in other people’s ass, and for example, their boss’s ass.

Yeah.

So think about it. Their nose gets brown. So they are called brown-nosers, but you can also use brown-nose as a verb, right?

Yeah.

He’s brown-nosing his boss.

Yeah. Or brown-nose your way to the top. So you’re advancing your succeeding by just brown-nosing rather than through ability.

Honestly, if someone can brown-nose their way solely by that, brown-nose their way to the top, this is an organization that I will stay away from.

Yeah. So there is another expression to the top, which is “sleep your way to the top”.

But that’s a whole other issue.

Exactly. We won’t go into that, but if you’re interested, you can check that up yourself.

Yeah, let’s keep it PG. But there are many other expressions to describe similar situations. So for example, to be in someone’s good books. This is not necessarily sucking up, it simply is...

To be liked.

To be liked or approved.

So this can be positive. So you’re in someone’s good books, because you’re doing a good job. So for example, she’s in the boss’s good books after finishing the project early, and because it’s something that she has done.

Yeah, you don’t have to suck up to be in your boss’s good books.

Yeah.

But obviously to some bosses, sucking up to them constantly is a way to be in their good books or to stay in their good books.

Yeah. Now a more formal way of saying this is to curry favour with someone.

Why is that curry? like curry the food?

It’s the same spelling, but I don’t know why we say curry favor.

To curry favor. 这里就是讨好，讨好某人 to curry favor with some, for example, in the beginning of the show, 安澜was trying to curry favor with me.

Yeah.

So that I don’t know what he wants to do, but he is up to no good.

That’s not nice. I was only trying to get on your good side.

To get on someone’s good side.  This is the same as to be in someone’s good books.

Yeah. It means to make someone like you by doing kind or helpful things. So this could also be to suck up to someone, but it can also be, for example, if you’ve had an argument with someone and you’re trying to ...

Make up

Make up. You’re trying to repair the relationship.

So for example, he’s trying to get on her good side by buying her coffee every morning.

Where’s my coffee?

You don’t drink coffee.

Where’s my tea?

I don’t know.

I thought you tried to curry favor with me.

You told me not to.

Yeah, but you can still try.

Yeah? What’s the point?

All right. Now as we are getting to the end of this episode, of this topic. Let’s look at some more sarcastic idioms, probably a little bit more exaggerated.

Yeah.

Brown-nose is already a bit graphic.

Yeah.

But you can also say “to kiss someone’s feet”.

Yeah, kiss someone’s shoes, kiss someone’s behind.

Behind means ass here.

Yeah. So this is one thing to be very careful of, ass in American English is accepted. It’s not really a swear word in that way.

It still is, but it’s not as serious as in British English.

Exactly. So the British expression is ass. And that is actually...

Quite rude.

That is quite rude.

对. 就是臀部这个词ass, 在美语里面会用的更加频繁, 而且大家会觉得它不是一个特别过分的词, 甚至有的小孩子也会说, but in British English,  no. You gotta be careful with that.

So, for example, I’ve had Chinese friends who’ve said or even Chinese students have said to me “ass” , and as a British person, that’s not acceptable.

Because Americans they also say kick-ass.

Yeah.

Like a kick-ass party, really good party which people generally don’t see that as a swearing or vulgar.

Yeah. But in British English, for example, if I say ass in like a formal setting ,or if I say to my parents, it’s seen as a little bit excessive.

But also 安澜, you are very, very polite when it comes to language.

Thank you.

Yeah, so to kiss someone’s feet, to kiss someone’s shoes or kiss someone’s behind, not saying ass...

Or bum.

Bum, to kiss someone’s bum. It just means that you are trying everything you can to suck up to someone, to show like I am your slave, that sort of thing, willing to serve you.

Or for example, be a bootlicker.

Oh, I’m sorry that just sounds fetishist.

Yeah. Nobody likes a bootlicker.

A bootlicker literally means you are someone who licks others boots or you lick this person’s boots就给人舔靴子的.

Yeah.

It doesn’t mean, it sounds graphic, but it’s not, like a graphic meaning. If you say someone is a bootlicker, literally you’re saying someone is a suck-up.

Yeah.

And for example nobody likes a bootlicker. They always agree with the boss no matter what.

Good thing that I’m not a bootlicker, isn’t it?

Good thing that I’m not wearing boots right now.

True that.

Before we turn this into some sort of restricted R-rated show, I think we’re going to wrap up. What we’re saying is we’re not teaching you to suck up.  And hopefully you’re not in an environment that you really are required to suck up. Because trust me, if you’re in that environment, consider maybe try to explore other options, alternatives.

Yeah. But hopefully we’ve given you quite a few expressions that you can use to describe people who suck up and also how these people suck up in English.

And complain about them behind their back.

Exactly.

On that note, we’re gonna wrap up today and leave us comments in the comment section or put in your request.

So until next time,

We’ll see you next time.

Bye.

Bye.

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